bowl turning

[jeff oldham]

I would like to start off by saying that I do thank each and everyone for their input on my posts concerning bowl turning;;;in as much as I would like to keep trying I don’t believe I have the nerve it takes;;;I ordered a easy wood tool; ;the round one and tried to smooth the edges of a bowl and actually I though I was doing pretty good;;;then it grabs it and threw it out of the chuck again;;;lol;;I think the good lord is trying to tell me something here and I believe I am going to listen;;;thank you all;;;I did read all your comments and I truly do thank you for taking your time and concern for writting them;;;;jeff

[Ryan Mooney]

Jeff,

Its not really all that bad! Honest! Eventually the terror abates and it starts to become pretty fun :D We all went through this to some extent

Seriously if you can find someone local to hang at the lathe with you for a couple of hours it will help you much much faster than trying to figure it out your own. There are a lot of subtleties that are obvious once you see them, but sure as heck aren't until figure them out.

[Ted Calver]

^^^What Ryan said, Jeff. Put your location in your profile and maybe someone will volunteer to give you a leg up.

[George Troy Hurlburt]

I use torque arms on my scraper like tools and have for years. It's a lot safer. This includes carbide tools. If my universal tool arm does not fit, I will take and wrap tape around the shaft near the grip and use a large pair of vise grips. My arthritis likes all the help it can get.

[Steve Schlumpf]

I agree with Ryan' suggestion - get with some turners for some one-on-one instructions - it will make a world of difference and you will actually enjoy the process of turning! Also, a quick Google search came up with a turning club that is local to you - someone there will be happy to assist you!
http://ptwoodturners.org/

[David Hill]

+1 on the "don't give up"
I've had my share of launches and blowups--in hindsight all my fault because I was pushing too hard, dull tool, at wrong angle, etc. etc. If you learn from it and use it to your advantage, things will improve as will your confidence. The ones that don't learn---sell their lathes and tools on CL.

[Bill Hensley]

Don't give up quite yet. I see you are in Greensboro. There is an active turning group that's meets in the rec center near the airport. Do a search for Piedmont Triad Woodturners Association or PM me. I'll be happy to help you.

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

I'll be happy to help you.
You just have to love woodturners!! Sharing folks.
faust

[Rik Rickerson]

Definitely don't give up until you're able to spend time with an experienced turner. Written instruction and videos only go so far due to varying size, strength, etc. I launch far too many bowls because I was trying to muscle the tool rather than guiding it. I almost gave up until I received some hands-on instruction and things clicked. Persevere, the reward is worth the effort!

[Reed Gray]

I think we all have experienced having difficulties with some thing, then some one shows that one little trick, you do a forhead slap, and then say, I should have been able to figure that out.....

robo hippy

[cody michael]

I bent 2 lathe spindles (threaded part face plate goes on) before I started to kinda figure out how this works!

[Stan Calow]

Jeff, like golf, music, dancing, or chess, this is one of those hobbies that requires you to pay your dues with time and failures, and then, suddenly, everything starts going the way it is supposed to.

[Scott Hackler]

Jeff, like mentioned above.... hands on tutoring is worth its weight in gold. I wish you were closer, because I could show you the basics in 3-4 hours and you'd be a happy turner and well on you way to the enjoyment phase of this craft! As a self taught turner, I went through exactly what your experiencing and worse. It was very frustrating and I had lots of bad bad bad catches before figuring it out. Meanwhile I was asking tons of questions here and watching almost every youtube video I could find! It would have been 1000% EASIER if I have worked with a mentor or just a fellow turner. Please seek out a local club and go check them out. Most clubs have a mentor program designed for your situation and more.

[terry mccammon]

I did some turning when I was in the Army in the 70's and never did again until about five years ago. So I did my usual, oceans of research both written and on-line, found a used lathe in my price range and a few inexpensive tools and Richard Raffin's book. With the book open on the bench I would read then go to the lathe, make a huge mess, re-read, re-mess and so forth. I knew everything and could do nothing. Progress was very painful and when something went right I usually was not sure why. So finally in desperation I joined a club which is not what I would normally do. One meeting observing one demonstration and I was about two years further than I had been. Bottom line, join a club.